Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Sells 19,058 Shares of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc $UVE

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lessened its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE) by 47.7% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 20,897 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 19,058 shares during the quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in Universal Insurance were worth $714,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Able Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance during the 1st quarter valued at $201,000. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in Universal Insurance by 170,750.0% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 3,417 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 3,415 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in Universal Insurance by 7.0% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 33,620 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,148,000 after purchasing an additional 2,189 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Universal Insurance during the fourth quarter valued at $495,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in Universal Insurance by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 133,255 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,504,000 after purchasing an additional 8,176 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 66.61% of the company’s stock.

Universal Insurance Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of UVE stock opened at $42.21 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.51. Universal Insurance Holdings Inc has a one year low of $21.96 and a one year high of $43.96. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $39.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.24. The company has a market capitalization of $1.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.25 and a beta of 0.72.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.61. The business had revenue of $398.16 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $481.09 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 37.51% and a net margin of 12.22%. Sell-side analysts expect that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 4.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.48%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of Universal Insurance stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.22, for a total transaction of $764,400.00. Following the sale, the chairman owned 1,148,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,886,306.10. This trade represents a 1.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders sold a total of 60,000 shares of company stock worth $2,332,800 in the last three months. Company insiders own 15.00% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on UVE. Wall Street Zen cut Universal Insurance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Zacks Research cut Universal Insurance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Universal Insurance has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $40.00.

About Universal Insurance

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc (NYSE: UVE) is a property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. The company underwrites homeowners and other residential property insurance products to protect against natural catastrophes such as hurricanes, windstorms and fires. It distributes policies primarily through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering coverage for primary residences, secondary homes, condominiums, vacant dwellings and rental properties across its service territory.

In addition to personal lines, Universal provides commercial property and casualty insurance tailored to small businesses and institutional clients.